To Build a Snowman
by aLittleOblivion
Summary: Third part of the White Christmas Series (Fiery White Christmas and Love on Ice). In their third year together, Natsu and Gray find themselves paired up in a Fairy Tail competition to build the best snowman out of the guild. Natsu seizes the opportunity to create what his heart has always wanted.


Disclaimer: The following is a literary work made for entertainment purposes. Neither the author nor the forums in which the following work appear make any profit off of the distribution of this work. Fairy Tail and its characters are the property of its creator Hiro Mashima. Support the original work.

A/N: I had written a story for this holiday season tradition about a week ago, but I really didn't like how it came out. So, I ended up rewriting the whole thing and am getting this out a few days later than I had hoped.

Hope everyone has had a wonderful holiday season and is enjoying a warm and loving end of the year with family and friends.

Lots of love,  
James

* * *

Note: This is part three of the White Christmas series. Please read Fiery White Christmas and Love on Ice prior to reading this story.

* * *

Part 3 of the White Christmas Series:  
 **To Build a Snowman**

An utterly contented sigh escaping his lips, Natsu propped his chin on the palm of his hand. He sat on barren, cold ground, surrounded by the white of a Father Christmas winter. Smiling easily, he stared across the expanse of ice before him. It shone as a jewel surrounded by the cottony lace of the season. And atop its glassy surface was the object of all of Natsu's affections. All of the wonderful things his heart had felt in the last two years had stemmed from the man, who as Natsu watched, glided effortlessly over the glassy lake.

Gray Fullbuster. How long ago had that man ceased being Natsu's rival? The fire dragon couldn't help but laugh at himself. That was an overstatement. The man would always be his rival. He would always be his nakama. And he would always be the bratty boy who pestered Natsu endlessly as a child, and drove him to become the man he is today. But, that man was something all too much more.

He caught the glance of blue eyes as Gray passed on the ice. And he smiled even wider, leaning more heavily with his elbow on his thigh. That man. He was more than words could describe. At least, to Natsu he was. And this Christmas, Natsu swore he would set that for all to hear. He would claim what was his for good. But for now, he just enjoyed the flittering feeling of his heart tip-tap-tippering with the elegant movements of Gray on ice.

Time, he had once thought would lessen the feeling that had consumed him. But yet, it only seemed to make it stronger still. Gray winked at Natsu as he passed again. The icemake mage sunk into his strides. His ice skates flicked over the eternal glass surface. And a snap of his skates on the ice caused Natsu to gulp.

He saw an angel born then. The winter sun bathed through the snow-covered trees, down onto the flying eagle, who spun rapidly in the air. Gravity it seemed had lost its hold, falling away to the overwhelming presence that was the true King on Ice. It wasn't the pull of the earth that brought Gray Fullbuster back to the ground - Gray's skates only came earthbound when he decided to come home again. So free was his skating, that even the bird's flight could not match his soaring height.

Landing into a crouch, Gray continued his whipping spin. One leg he straightened, his fingertips gracing his boot's cap as he nearly sat on the icy world. Ice glistened about his dance, shining with the soft light drifting through the cold air. It surrounded him. Shining gold, a cloak wrapped around Gray's unceasing spin. Natsu sat up. His spine stiffened a little. He swore, as Gray slowly stood out of the spin, he saw fire dancing along the ice. The cloak of glistening life, turned to fanning wings. Natsu gulped.

An eternity later, Gray looked at him from the center of the ice. Their eyes met with a bond that could never be severed. That angel. That king. That man. Natsu sucked in a breath, his aching lungs forsaking him. He'd lost track even of his own natural instincts - the natural cadence of his heart and his breaths had been captured by that man.

Knowingly, Gray just smiled back. His oh-so-blue eyes were striking, bold, and vibrant, and yet alluring. They were like a deep, sea siren's call to Natsu. And his soul nearly was drifting over the ice, forsaking his body, completely entranced. That was no angel. But a demon. A demon of ice that somehow made the fire dragon burn ever hotter. He held out his arms wide, beckoning his love to him.

With a wild smile on Gray's lips, he skated directly across the lake. He didn't need to be told twice. He stopped at the edge of the ice, swallowing and centering himself, lest he throw abandon and jump as a damsel into Natsu's arms. He let the icemake formed skates drift off to mist over his boots. But just as snow crunched under his sole, a small tug pulled him backward. Gray, frowned. His mind was at a loss as seconds ticked by and it failed to realize that Natsu alone was not his entire world. Gray turned to find a small, eager-eyed boy staring up at him with a nervous gaze. His small fist was balled in the tail of Gray's white, winter coat.

"Mister, c-could you teach me how to skate like that . . ." The boy bit his lip, staring up, hopefully.

Gray's heart tripped. But then he blinked. No less than eight wide-eyed kids looked to him under a sweat-inducing stare. Smiling awkwardly, Gray ran his fingers up through his hair. He glanced back to Natsu, but found no help there. Instead, he saw a strange light dancing in those beautiful emerald eyes. There was laughter at Gray's predicament, sure, but there was something else entirely . . .

Another small fist tugged at the hem of Gray's jacket. "Please, mister."

Sliding a palm to cover half his face, Gray couldn't help but give off a defeated smile. There was no winning against children. They could capture your heart in an instant. Their eagerness, their joy, and their innocence. Gray knelt down, putting a hand on the boy and girl's shoulders, and gave them a small nod. Ice once again formed around his boots and he looked back to Natsu, mouthing, _sorry_.

With a train of small hands linked behind him, Gray led as the locomotive around the ice. Gently swaying with each push off his skates, he weaved the group of little ones in a winding arc, gliding across the lake. Something about it, Natsu couldn't help but smile behind the palm of his hand. Children, huh? It wasn't something he ever really thought about . . . but . . . a little Gray. Now, that would be cute.

"Alright, everyone pair up! We are going to skate in two's now!" Gray called with a friendly charge over the youngsters.

The first child that had started this impromptu group skate stuck to Gray's side, holding on to the hem of his shirt. The kids darted to grab their friend's hands, holding them up into the air and paired off. Until, a small girl, silky black hair trailing down from her fuzzy cat beanie was left. Her eyes started to water. "I-I don't . . ."

Cocking a brow, Gray put his hands on his hips, standing in the center of an arc of children. He looked down at the small boy who held onto him, and jerked his chin toward the girl. But the boy just buried his face in Gray's jacket. Still sitting in the snow, the fire dragon's back stiffened when blue eyes snapped to him.

With a winning grin, Gray skated over to the girl - the boy dragged along behind. The icemake mage knelt on his knee and gave her a warm smile with a gentle hand on her shoulder. "How would you like to skate with the one and only Salamander!?"

"H-huh?"

"You know, that crazy, hot shot that the whole town is always talking about?" "The one that everyone is scared is going to blow up the town?" Came back a sweet, high-pitched answer.

Gray felt the laugh building up inside him. "The very same!" Leaning closer, Gray covered his mouth with a curved palm and whispered, "plus he's really cute. And he told me that he would really like to be your skating partner. Could you do it for him? It would mean a lot to him."

Hiding her face behind cat-paw mittens the girl nodded slowly, allowing Gray to spin around and give his boyfriend a shit-faced grin. "Good news! She's agreed to skate with you!"

Natsu just glared back. But, seeing the girl's eyes peek up at him from behind her blue mittens . . . what could a guy do? Before he knew it, he was on the ice, holding her small hand in his. "I like your hat." The fire dragon cocked his head a little, seeing the wide, googley-eyes on the top of her head. And then the rounded cat ears. "Is that Happy?"

Her eyes suddenly saucers, her cheeks became scarlet. "I really like Happy. He is really cute."

There was a limit, Natsu thought as his smile widened, to how cute a kid could be. . . . Right?

* * *

Holding two steaming hot cups of tea, Natsu waited at the edge of the lake while his beau saw off the remainder of the kids. The Happy-fan's mom had picked her up earlier, allowing the fire mage a chance to slip back into town and hunt down a street vendor. Gray took his cup appreciatively, sighing tiredly before he took a long, scalding sip.

"Sorry about that," Gray finally said, letting out a white cloud with his breath.

"Don't be." Natsu nodded to the kids who were all excitedly talking with their parents. They whipped around the ice, showing their parents all they had learned, eager with an energy only children had. "You made their Christmas's. Besides, you were very cute."

"I'm tired." Gray took another sip of his tea, but looked with a smile, out over the ice, scrawling with dancing kids.

"Old man."

"Mmmm, that's right. I'm an old man. I may just need to curl up beside someone by a fire and warm my aging bones."

"Is that right?"

"Mmhmm," Gray slid his hand around Natsu's hip, tugging him into his side. He hugged him in what had become their norm. It wasn't a fiery passionate touch, nor a devouring flame, but rather what had become their need to be comfortable. Through two years more together than apart, there almost felt something lacking if they weren't touching. Without that constant presence of fire, Gray himself even felt an odd cold.

"We have the snowman competition still."

"Uff," Gray rubbed at his neck before taking another long sip of his warm, cinnamon and ginger spiced tea. "Which idiot's bright idea was that again?"

"That, would be my one and only idiot of a beautiful boyfriend."

"Don't call me beautiful."

"But you are."

"It makes me uneasy."

"Mmmm, you are just going to have to get used to it. 'Cuz you are." Natsu framed Gray's jaw with his rough palm. His eyelids slowly drifted closed as his lips met his beau's. In the cold snow, winter biting at their cheeks, there was an overwhelming warmth shared between them. A loud _ooooooooo_ sounded from the ice, causing Natsu to chuckle and open his eyes. He found the whole lake of children staring at them with wide, giggling looks. Just for the heck of it, Natsu pressed his free hand to his raven-haired love's back and forced him to arch away. Leaning in, while supporting Gray, he took Gray's lips again. He smiled against Gray's touch when that elicited more giggling.

Staring up at Natsu, Gray couldn't help but laugh. He felt so light. He felt just so . . . what would be the word? Good. In every sense of it. "You done?"

Looking up to the sky just as a white, wintry blanket began to fall again, Natsu pursed his lips. Snowflakes danced down, clinging to his spiky, pink hair. He shrugged. "Alright." And he let Gray stand back on his feet again - but, not before stealing one more peck. His emerald eyes glistened, the gem-flames dancing against the snow. "You definitely are the most beautiful thing I have ever seen."

"Alriiiight." Gray shook his head, waved to the kids quickly, and, weaving his fingers with Natsu's, tugged him away from the ogling crowd. "Saying things like that . . ." The icemake mage mumbled under his breath as he tugged Natsu at a near jog. "Like anything could be more beautiful than you."

Blinking, Natsu's teasing grin, fell with a splash of rose across his cheeks. They didn't say another word as they made their way through town to the guild hall.

* * *

Fairy Tail was as it always was during the holidays. Filled with family, friends, warmth, large-steaming feasts, and free-flowing ale. The last of course had led to countless mages who were slumped over tables, or just as often sprawled out on the floor, inebriated into slumber. But there was more to the guild than food or drink. The warmth in the air didn't come from the sheer number of bodies crammed into the near-bursting hall, nor did it even come from the many magical fireplaces lining the walls. The warmth there came from love. It was a bond that enwrapped them all irrevocably. The time they had spent together, the countless times they faced death's door by each other's sides - the millions of tears shared, and just as many laughs rung, they made each and every mage in that hall a member of a family.

A family, not by birth, but by choice. And that family was all the sweeter place to be for it. Natsu spent the day in that hall next to the one member of that family who had inexplicably come to mean so much more to him still. Unconsciously, Natsu slid his hand into his vest pocket. His fingers traced along the hard edges of the box inside. The soft, velvet casing ran underneath his fingertip. That man, had come to mean more to Natsu than anything.

His heart had been strange for the last two years. It was a feeling Natsu knew, but it had taken him nearly that long to place it. For, it was a very long time ago that he had felt that odd cadence in his chest. It thrummed life, often skipping just by a touch, or simply a look. It gave out on him, leaving him in a void, but it also thundered with life, pumping fire through his veins. He knew that feeling. It was something to be cherished, as it so rarely graced a person. And Natsu had been lucky enough now to feel it twice in one lifetime. The first, for his dragon foster-father. Now, for a droopy-eyed, ice mage, stripper. The fire that burned through his heart was different between the two, but so very similar.

His thumbnail found the seam of the soft box. But he quickly withdrew his hand, when Gray turned to look at him. He nonchalantly brought his hand back up to his glass. He picked it up, savoring the sweet, fiery rum dancing down his tongue.

"Sooo, are you boys ready for the competition?" Mirajane popped up from behind the counter, seemingly out of nowhere as was her habit. "Everyone is already heading outside," she craned her neck, "well, everyone that is still conscious, that is. This was such a great idea, Gray! A snowman building competition! I love it! You're not going to have it east though," Mira smiled in her oh so sweet way, though her competitive eyes were already of the demon witch's. "Big bro, Elf, and I are going to beat you boys. Count on it."

Natsu raised his glass to her, but he shivered. He was already picturing a big, beefy snowman with bulging muscles. A, shall we say, MANLY snowman. "Well, Gray?" The fire dragon slid his burning gaze to his partner. Just enough intoxicated. "Ready?"

"Baby, I was born ready!" The icemake mage cracked his knuckles, mist already rolling over his hands in anticipation. They snuck a quick kiss and then pushed off from the bar as a duo with a mission. Shoulder to shoulder, they walked out the hall and faced the pair of challengers before them. Erza, with her long scarlet hair, stood out the most among the crowd . . . never mind the fact that she was in her Fairy Queen armor. Next to her was a shrouded man, his black hood just shadowing his eyes. Though, the tattoo that ran down his cheek was just visible - at least it was to a man with a dragon's sight. Jellal. Natsu never quite understood his need to hide himself. The guy had practically been at Fairy Tail every day for the last three years. Everyone knew him, and everyone eventually got along with him. That . . . may have been quickened by Erza's threats of a sword in the eye if anyone so much as talked to Jellal in a rude manner. And yet, Jellal insisted on keeping his presence shrouded, as it were.

Then, there was the white-haired duo. The sweet, half angel, half pure demon, Mira and her hulkish bigger brother towering beside her. The metal studded brat was there was well, his girlfriend and genius bookworm was at his side. And then there was the Thunder God Tribe. The fair, green-haired prince was beside his dangerous and imposing man - Evergreen and Bickslow making their own duo.

Natsu's fellow fire mage's had formed the only father and son pair, and they stood with cracking purple flames wrapping around them, their arms crossed over their chests in mirrored challenges. Lucy was rolling her eyes at her lionhearted partner and it seemed Cana had left behind her father, his butt in the snow, a mead barrel slammed over his head.

The dazed crash mage made the perfect podium. Or at least, that was what the tiny guild master had decided. He hopped onto the barrel, balancing on the swaying wood. His voice thundered out over the field of combatants. "Are you reaaaaaddddddyyyyyy? It's time to kick off the very first; the inaugural; the maiden voyage of the Fairy Tail Snowman Building Competition! The rules are simple. You will compete in pairs. You will use any items you can get your hands on. And you will have thirty minutes to construct the very best snowman you could possibly every dream of! Make each and every snowman embody all that Fairy Tail is! Are you reaaaady?

"On your marks! Get Set! Oh - and one last thing. No magic allowed."

A sudden collective groan blasted through the crowd. Expletives rang out in the moans.

"Now, now! We wouldn't want any unfair advantage. Just think of the guild member you are competing against who had the idea for this competition in the first place!" At that, the crowd's attention, and flickering irritation spilt in Gray's direction. "If you use magic, you are automatically disqualified. Now with that settled! GO!"

"Come on, Gray!" Natsu tugged at their clasped hands, pulling Gray to an open area of snow. "Let's do this thing!"

They, of course, had a battle plan in mind already. They didn't need to talk as they both set about their tasks. Gray began rolling the smaller snowball, sitting down in the snow to detail the intricacies of its face as Natsu sprinted back and forth, rolling massive boulders of snow in front of him. Gray carved away at what would be the head. This was their surprise to the guild after all. Anyone could make a regular, old snowman. But only they could combine their skills and come up with a Natsu inspired masterpiece.

Technically, it wasn't cheating when Natsu ran lines in the snow, compacted them, and using the heat from his body, formed the white powder into clear ice. It was just his natural body heat after all. Despite the cold, sweat beaded his brow as he concentrated on his work. Aside from the main body snowballs, Natsu had another secret in store. Well more than one . . . he glanced at Gray and when he saw the icemake wizard completely absorbed in his task, he fished out the box from his vest and packed it into the snowman. As for the other secret, Natsu, carefully bent the ice in his palms, making two fanning webs of clear ice.

Gray cocked a brow, looking up from his project for the first time to check on his partner's progress. "What are you doing?"

"It's a surprise," Natsu was on his knees in the snow, intricately running his fingers along the snow and ice until it melted into just the right patterns. "How are you doing?"

"Five minutes!"

"Just - about - done." Gray scrubbed his palm along his chin, inspecting his work. After making one final tweak, he stood up, patting the snow free from his pants. "All set. Ready when you are."

Jumping to Gray's side, Natsu looked down and then beamed to his love. Now that, was a dragon's head. Hell, it actually looked as fiery and dangerous as Igneel even though it was made out of pure-white, virgin snow.

"Woah-woah. Gloves!" Gray grabbed Natsu's wrist as he reached for the snow-dragon head. "Don't you dare melt that!"

Snaking his tongue between his fangs, Natsu gloved his warm hands and hefted the dragon head with intense concentration. Gently, he brought the dragon head onto the snowy shoulders. Gray grinned at his side. But, Natsu, quickly went to his side project, braking the ice free from the snow. His blue-eyed companion cocked a brow, but then his face lit when he saw the intricate ice form in Natsu's hands.

"What good is a dragon without wings?" Natsu bumped his brows, sliding the spine of the wings into the back of the behemoth-snowman-dragon hybrid. And just as time was called. They fist bumped each other, looking up at their towering masterpiece.

The snowmen were moved by the master's magic and lined up together. Each pair, it seemed, had forgone the simplicity of a snowman and changed the competition into something else entirely. Erza and Jellal's was a four-sword-wielding barbarian, whipping snow headband, bare chest, and all. Mira and Elfman's . . . Natsu covered his face in a palm. Even his ridiculous image in his head could not match the utter MANLINESS of their snowman. It's biceps - it had biceps - were massive, thicker than trees. It's chest and snowman abs were barrel-sized. And - Natsu cupped his lips in his hand, guffawing. Atop it's head was a delicate tiara.

Lucy and Leo's, well, that one could only be called a constellation. Laxus and Freed's mirrored the very fury of lightning itself, Thor, or Raiden, or Ramuh, or maybe all three. Somehow, the snowy eyes even sparked with dangerous lightning strikes. Evergreen's hadn't fared as well. They had apparently decided to use a metal skeleton and Bickslow was now attached by his tongue to the center metal rod. Bickslow, it seemed, had become Evergreen's snowman in turn as he was bound until he couldn't move, up to his neck in balls of snow.

They all made Natsu either laugh or look in serious awe. But still, nothing could compare to his.

Makarov and his panel of judges - Cana, Lisanna, and Happy, made their way to each snowman in turn. Gray grabbed Natsu's hand as the judges approached them. But, Natsu's heart was thundering too loudly in his chest. His mind had gone to sea, and even he had sweat beading down his palms. "I-I," Natsu took in a breath, pivoting to look directly into Gray's crystal, blue eyes. "I have a surprise for you."

The judges lined up right in front of the snowman, noting details on their clipboards. But, Natsu didn't even see them. He held out his free hand, his palm glowing cherry.

"Natsu, don't! What are you doing!?" Gray lunged for the snowman, but the fire dragon held him back with his other hand. When his palm met the snow, it gave way instantly to the heat. Water poured down the snowman's side. It started to collapse. Gray looked on incredulously.

The chest of the snowman all but disappeared, it's intricately styled head falling to the base snowball. It tilted back, the dragon's open jaws, roaring to the starlit sky. The wings shuttered, glistening as they fell away, to be buried in the snow below. The dragon's head started to melt. Its carved scales dripped past its horns until . . .

Gray's eyes widened. "Natsu."

In the center of the dragon's maw, a now very wet purple velvet box was sitting against the melting snow.

"Naaatsu," Gray repeated, this time, turning his attention back to his partner.

Natsu was already on his knee. There was a collective intake of breath from their Fairy Tail family, and then silence. Nobody moved. Natsu stared up with fiery, passion-filled eyes, directly into Gray. The raven stared back down, frozen.

It was then that a blur of blue fur swooped down and snatched the box from the melted dragon's tongue. Happy twisted in the air, dropping the box where it landed in Natsu's open palm.

"Gray?" Emerald flames were starting to give way to tears. Though they didn't do more than well and dance in his eyes. "Will you do me the honor of being my one and only for the rest of my life? I couldn't imagine someone else I would ever want to spend it with. You, who," Natsu's lips crooked in a small chuckle, "you, who drive me completely insane sometimes. You who, are a stripping popsicle. You who," this time, he reached out, his fingertips just grazing the back of Gray's motionless hand." You who I love more than anyone and anything and who I could not imagine life without. Gray? Will you marry me?"

Swallowing, Gray just stared at Natsu, shocked beyond all compare. The fire dragon lifted the lid of the velvet box, revealing a sterling silver ring, etched with an entwined symbol of fire and ice. Gray saw a small globe insignia, snow falling over an eternal flame. His arms were wrapped around Natsu, before he knew it. He squeezed the fire mage as hard a he could, pressing their chests together, the ring still in-between them. "Natsu!"

"Is that a yes?"

"Huh?" Gray looked up to see the entire Fairy Tail guild standing in the snow surrounding them.

Makarov had his hands on his hips. He leaned in, tilting his head. "Well?"

Choking up, Gray's vivid blue eyes broke with tears. They fell down his cheeks, dropping like snow into the pink hair below. "Yes. Of course, yes!" He sat back to look at Natsu directly. And repeated while looking directly into his golden-green eyes:

"Of course, yes."


End file.
